The soldier, accused by his opponents of wanting to establish a military dictatorship, is supported by regional actors involved in the Libyan issue, such as Egypt and the United Arab Emirates.
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He chose to formalize his ambitions two days after the son of Muammar Gaddafi. Marshal Khalifa Haftar, a strongman from eastern Libya, ran for president on Tuesday (November 16th). “Not because I am running after power but to lead our people at this crucial time to glory, progress and prosperity”, justified the career soldier in a speech broadcast live from Benghazi, his stronghold.
September 22, Khalifa Haftar, 77 years old, had provisionally retired from his post at the head of the self-proclaimed Libyan National Army (ANL), as stipulated in the electoral law, to be able to run for president on December 24. The law in question, criticized by its detractors, allows the marshal to stand as a candidate and regain his military post if he is not elected.
Khalifa Haftar, accused by his opponents of wanting to establish a military dictatorship, is supported by regional actors involved in the Libyan issue, such as Egypt and the United Arab Emirates. He is seeking to conquer power through the ballot box after the resounding failure of his military adventure at the gates of Tripoli, seat of government recognized by the UN, in 2019.
Marshal Haftar’s candidacy comes two days after that of Seif al-Islam Gaddafi, wanted by the International Criminal Court for “crimes against humanity”. In addition to these two personalities, four other little-known candidates have so far applied.
Since the fall of Muammar Gaddafi’s regime in 2011, Libya has been plagued by bloody violence and struggles between rival powers in the east and west of the country. In his speech on Tuesday, Khalifa Haftar claimed that the December election was “the only way to get Libya out of chaos”.